2013 in Books

Well, it’s the beginning of a new year already. 2013 seems to have gone really fast for me. I only managed to read 133 books this year, 54 less than last year. Still, I think that’s pretty good.

I’ve put together some lists of books. My favorite books of 2013, other books I read in 2013 that didn’t make the top 5 but are worth mentioning, and the 5 books I’m most excited to read in 2014. None of these lists are in any particular order.

Top 5 favorite books I read in 2013:

Image from LC’s Adventures in Libraryland

The Raven Boys(Raven Cycle #1) by Maggie Stiefvater, which not only didn’t agree to my maybe-this-will-be-okay expectations, it knocked them down, trampled them, and made me wonder where I got such idiotic ideas.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. I wasn’t really expecting much from a tearjerker about cancer kids, but I ended up falling in love with the heartbreakingly beautiful romance.

The Last Dragonslayer(The Last Dragonslayer #1) by Jasper Fforde, which I’m glad I gave a chance. Its screwball storytelling is a perfect blend of smart and silly, realistic and ridiculous, ordinary and oddball.

The Crystal Ordeal (Legends of Leone #1) by M.G. Dekle, an Indie book that surprised me. I couldn’t read this book at night because the male lead would make me laugh so hard I’d wake up my family.

Steelheart (Reckoners #1) by Brandon Sanderson, a dark, suspenseful, action-packed not-exactly-superhero story with an urban vibe. Any book that can make me draw wrong conclusions is impressive, but a book that can trample them this fantastically earns definite bonus points.

Image from The Book Stop

Other books worth mentioning:

The Last Guardian (Artemis Fowl #8) by Eoin Colfer. The last Artemis Fowl book was bittersweet for me – it was a fabulous ending to a fabulous series, but I was sad to see a series I’ve loved for so long end.

Allegiant (Divergent #3) by Veronica Roth – a book I thought I’d like, but didn’t. I liked the first two books in the series, but this one killed off too many characters that (in my opinion) didn’t have to die.